Caravan Attacked: Crossroads and Daggerhills

Felled, she smirked, her head tilted to one side, the blue flames, devouring the Forest. Her eyes, they were cold, her wounds were deep, blood trickled from her wounds. She was at last Free. Mother, Father... Sister... the Savages of this warm climate shall know the meaning," The Ice burns brighter and harsher than any Fire" May the Dark Triune see this as a Blow to those that would hinder the Movement, the Injustice that they caused shall be returned Threefold, A Hundredfold, and Thousandfold. If by their Will, I will see you In the Frozen Tundra. She spits and coughs up her own blood. Snow and Ice, blow from her robes, as she waits for death to take her.

Kalthanar immediately decapitated the woman as she hit the floor before placing the head in a pouch and picking up the body quenching the flames with the woman's wet robes (the ones that were on his arm). Kalthanar looked to Maura walking out of the flames dropping the body closer to them .

" I know many casters can create water... if we can do that enough here we might be able to contain the fire. As for your caravan Natalya... your customers will forgive you this once. I will buy you a new carriage as well. And this one... *he gestured to the headless body* She'll answer for the trouble she caused here today."

Despite just decapitating a woman and dragging the body over to them, Kalthanar had a cold icy calm to him, perhaps a defense mechanism from letting his rage over take him.

As the icy flames engulf their surroundings, Maura begins uttering another prayer and moving her hands in a practiced manner. Her attention is focused on her casting and on Natyala.

(( Spell being attempted: "Energy Immunity: Cold". Target: Natyala. ))

the fire has burned Kal up the arm and will not heal easily. It has an infernal touch to it, a corrupting influence of it's homeland. His heritage helps him bare well enough, but that doesn't elevate it completely. His arm will be very sensitive for a time.

Mineva has her own problems, having to strip off her armor to keep herself from burning alive, she too has suffered a massive burn on her back where the oils had soaked in. It will heal, eventually, but for now it is painful to bend and move, like she had lay out in the sun for far too long.

The body of the mage erupts in the flames, the blaze is already spirally out of control. The sac Kal had with the head caught as well, and the tongues of the flames licked for his hand, not burning, but temptingly close.

Before there would be any escape back to Naytala, the two fighters had a problem. Mainly, the fire that surrounded them. It was growing stronger, threatening to consume them all.

Natyala was screaming at them. She had gone from tears, to wails, to curses. the adventurers who swore to protect her were now fighting and lighting the roads on fire. She was irrationally devastated. When maura moved to cast on her, Natyala moved to strike her. She didn't hit her, just a raise of a hand, a pause as she contained herself, and a slow slumping down into the dirt. Her caravan was gone, she was late, and everything was going up in flames.

It had been more than could been expected. Her body erupted in Hellish flames, the Fury of the felled Mage a cruel and yet graceful last resort had proven to be more than anything she would have ever hoped for, the Forest Burned, and they were responsible, they had cornered her, had they let her escape perhaps the forest would have been spared, but no, they did what she had thought they would, It would seem that this was fated to happen. Her body now fully consumed by the Hellrime Flames, a Mingling of Ice and Fire, of Heat of Frost-burn, from the Depths of Cania had fully consumed her headless corpse, her head that was within the pouch burned also. They Would not have this victory, they would not claim her as a prize of war.

Protecting Natyala's life was top priority for Maura. She finishes her chanting and attempts to lay a hand on the the driver's head, covering her in the spell's shielding effect. (Range of spell is Touch.) Her charge safe at the moment, Maura then turns her attention to the other two. A pang of desperation overcomes her. Her love and her closest friend were in danger. She blinks a few times, trying to mentally block out the cries and the roar of the flames. She hoped beyond hope that this spell would work. She begins to pray loudly, her voice rising in volume to drown out the chaos around her.

Shouted in Celestial...:

Her eyes fly open and anyone that could see them would notice they've changed from their usual emerald green to a shimmering gold.

(( Attempting to cast Greater Dispel Magic. I have worked out the mechanics, all you have to do, Vox, is plug in the necessary numbers. ))

Mechanical details:

Kalthanar seemed hardly worried, he's survived bombardments from skymages practically unscathed, a forest fire however magical the fire was didn't concern him one bit. His only worries were getting his friends and lover to safety. He was miffed by the disappearance of the body but at least he killed her , her body having being burned he had few doubts she would be able to be revived by any allies.

"Do your thing Maura, then lets get out of here.*turns to look at Natalya* We're going caravan shopping."

The wind was starting to pick up, and the clouds that had been looming were not towering over half of the sky. Dust was picking up with the wind and small rain drops started to hit the ground. At first it was a drizzle, a simply gentle warm pitter-pattering, but it quickly hastened. The breeze grew fierce, and the thunder rolled as the clouds chugged along the sky, dragging the forest under its angry arms. Then the downpour started. Those foreboding clouds, that black line on the horizon was no devil, or coven, or mass hoard, it was just mother nature.

But that didn’t make it any less powerful. Nature may not be collecting souls directly, but it could pack a punch and take a few lives out of pure indifference. It was a vicious storm, that wasn't settling for anything less than a marathon to its end. The rain fell in large bullets, hurled by the wind into the eyes and face. Flashes of lightning crashed angrily, and the thunder rumbled in their rib-cages. The fires were overtaken, smashed and snuffed out by the impending rain, leaving charcoal sticks of trees in its wake. The forest would have a scar on it for years to come, but won’t completely burn down.
The adventurers were stuck in the puddling mud, quite a distance from a roof or an inn. Natayla sat in the mud, the rain soaking her to the bone with the rest of the party. She tried to shield her face from the rain, bowing her head. She had probably heard what Kal said, and she mouthed something that was caught by the wind and thrown aside with the rest of the debris around him.

In the distance, in the darkness and curtain of the rain, two dim lights began to peek out from down the road.

Maura didn't even wait to confirm the outcome of her prayer, though the thunderstorm did bring a brief smile to her lips. She pulled off her enchanted cloak and wrapped it over Natyala, then attempting to lift the woman to her feet. "We need to move!" she'd shout, seemingly unaware of the lights in the distance.

"Take care of Natalya, I'll watch our arses. It's just a storm but I don't want her getting sick or the bitch of misfortune to strike and one of us catches a lightning bolt" He yelled, before eyeing Lillany, giving a nod as he recognized her from around the Ironhouse halls.

The lights grew brighter as they slipped out of the curtains of rain, a pair of wheels jumping and bouncing them back and forth. It was moving fast, pulled by eight thundering hooves. Either the driver wasn't aware of the vicious storm around them, or they didn't care to stay in it, rushing through puddles and splitting water on either side of the road.

The crowds of adventurers spilled out of the darkness for the driver, and the reigns snapped tight with a crack. The horses dug in as they slammed on the breaks and the entire body of the horses and wagon slid passed them. Water sprayed up from the wheels and covered those closest to the road in mud as they bulk of the wagon began to fishtail and swerve onto two wheels. The body of the wagon stopped, teetered a bit on the side, then fell back onto all fours with a wood-cracking thunk.

A body moved in the shadows of the rain, a shuffling, then an opening of a door. Cast in front of a warm glow of firelight, the figure stood. One arm struggling the hold the door at bay, the second cupping its hand around a mouth and calling out. Their words swept away by the wind.

"Oh, thank Shaundakul," she thought to herself as the wagon came into view. Seeing what appeared to be an invitation from the obscured figure, Maura grabs the despondent Natyala by the shoulders and lifts her up without hesitation, moving her quickly to the open door of the wagon. The wind, wet, and chill was starting to penetrate even her natural resistance, but the cleric was determined to see her charge to safety and comfort.

(( Relevant stats: STR 17 for trying to pick Naty up. ))

*even if Kalthanar couldn't hear Mineva he had plans to sit up by the driver, climbing up next to him, the tiefling's face a blank slate, trying to remain emotionless for now so he wouldn't have an outburst. Hands resting on the hilts of his weapons ready for anything. *

The wagon, a closed box with wheels. A large wooden monstrosity with rolled up awnings tied to the walls, and a covered seat for the driver. There was a wooden panel that slid back to allow the driver to squeeze into the covered wagon, and a door on the side. The figure had slipped its way through the window, into the room of the wagon to open the main door. The figure stood in the doorway in front of the gentle candlelight inside. The wind trying to rip the door right off its frame and away from the figure.

He was a shorter man, his robes whipping around his trousers. As they moved in closer, they could see his face. He looked like his ancestors drew random races out of a hat. Sun elf ears and moon elf eyes. A human nose and jaw.

“Please! Take your time!” The man lurched as the wind picked up.  The horses stomped their hooves, and the wagon jostled back and forth. He nearly flew out of the door-frame, but saved himself. “I could do this all day!”

Maura all but lifts Natyala into the wagon and gets her settled inside. Ignoring the disheveled hair sticking to her own face or the chills wracking her body, she tends to Natyala like a worried mother, checking her for any wounds regardless of their severity. "I'm so sorry," Maura utters painfully. "We'll get you a new wagon. Find you the best horses."

(( Bump. Anything else happening with this? Is this man to be trusted? Do they make it to comfort and safety without anymore hiccups? Does anyone catch a cold?! The suspense is killing me. :p ))

The inside of the wagon was enchanted, and it was much larger than it should have been looking in from the outside. A large stretching room cluttered with knick knacks and odd pieces. Signs, pieces of cloth, and shrines hung off the wooden walls. They were messily nailed in place, hanging upside down, having been either put on wrong or jostled out of place and remain hanging by a thread. Maura would note Shaundakul along side Sharess, salune, waukeen, corellon and many others.
Hoops and stands, rings and throwing blades lay scattered around the room, thrown out of place by the wagon ripping through the storm. The only things that managed to remain in place were three doors off their hinges strapped to the wall in the back. Each one were painted in bright purples, reds, and blues. Elven scribed across all three, the words slightly interrupted by the leather straps that held them in place.

“So, what brings you out to the middle of nowhere?” The man said cheerfully enough. He had a relaxed tone, walking away from the women to pull the shudders that separated the driver’s and the rain from the internal belly of the wagon. “Lost?” He asked Kal, who had placed himself on the driver’s bench, giving the figure a blank stare. He had a beat of looking him down before spreading his arms open to invite him inside. “You can come in if you want—Just try not to touch anything. I have a few toys that can get temperamental. Comes with the job I'm afraid.”

"Her caravan was attacked, magic went awry, her wagon made off for the ethereal plane," she chuckles softly. "The forest would probably be engulfed in Hellrime if it wasn't for this storm." Maura looks about the cabin, finally relaxing and enjoying the much quieter environ. She smiles softly as she spots the small shrine to Shaundakul. "Do you have any dry blankets, mister...?"

Kalthanars' guard laxed just a bit upon seeing the shrines of said gods but not entirely so by any means. Entering the caravan's back portion, careful not to touch any of said tempermental toys.

"So what brings you out here?" He asked of the driver..."And what manner of wagon is this? It is clearly ensorcelled..."